“This book is a mountain: it is impossible to measure it or even to see it properly except at a distance.” –Victor Hugo, in an argument with his publisher

My lolo (tagalog for “grandfather”) had read the book repeatedly while my mother was growing up in the Philippines. I never met him (he passed away before our visit when I was 10), but felt closer to him after and while I read this book. I used to imagine the words of wisdom and experience that perhaps he might have shared with me, had we the opportunity to dialogue, despite the 71 years that stood between us.

New translation: http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/the_tls/article4816401.ece

I read this over the course of a year...but had restarted it several times over the years because of its sheer size. Given it took 20 to write, not too shabby. It was indeed mountain, that I repeatedly tried to scale, and finally did. The new translation is 100,000 words more?! The version I have was already 1200+ pages!!! Looks like a challenge to revisit that “mountain.”